This disclosure relates in general to the field of information handling systems, and more particularly to a system and method for detecting blank modules.
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Information handling systems, such as servers and storage subsystems, use an increasing amount of power and resources as information handling needs increase. As computing and power requirements continue to increase, users are looking for ways to pack more computing power into smaller spaces while at the same time saving money, conserving energy, and having flexibility. For example, companies are migrating towards high density server applications or modular computing systems, such as blade servers and brick servers, instead of conventional U-sized servers (a U is a standard unit of measure for designating the height in computer enclosures and rack cabinets where 1U equals 1.75 inches). The modular systems include modular components such as blade servers, power supplies, cooling fans, and disk drives that can be easily installed in or removed from the system as individual modules. The most compact conventional U-sized servers are 1U high and typically hold two processors meaning that a maximum of 42 servers with 84 processors can fit in a standard 42U server rack cabinet. With high density servers such as blade servers, a standard 42U server rack cabinet can generally hold up to 84 servers with 168 processors where each server typically has two processors but may have more than two processors.
Increasing the number of servers within a server rack cabinet requires additional cooling in order to account for the heat generated by the operation of the blade servers. Therefore, additional cooling fans or cooling fans having greater cooling capacity are needed in order to prevent the servers from overheating due to the increased heat load of the additional processors. Because the servers are modular components and therefore easily installed and removed within a modular server chassis, a user may not completely fill the modular server chassis with the modular servers resulting in the modular server chassis having one or more empty sections. The empty sections adversely affect the cooling of the installed modular servers. Because air, like water or electricity, flows in the path of least resistance, when the cooling fans pull cooling air into the modular server chassis to cool the modular servers, the majority of the cooling air flows in the empty sections and not over the installed modular servers. Therefore, the installed modular servers do not receive adequate cooling and the operating temperature increases. As the system heats up, a controller for the cooling fans detects the rising system operating temperature and increases the operational speed of the cooling fans to compensate for the increasing operating temperature. The increase in cooling fan speed pulls in additional cooling air but the majority of the cooling air continues to flow through the empty sections and not over the installed modular servers resulting in the operating temperature continuing to increase. As the operating temperature increases, the cooling fans increase operational speed until the operating temperature rises to a dangerous level so that the system shuts down in order to not overheat and cause permanent damage. The system shuts down without any warning to the users and the users lose any data that has not been saved which is frustrating for the users. Furthermore, the system overheating results in system down time and less efficient operation which is disadvantageous to the users.
Therefore, a need has arisen for a system and method that provides optimal and efficient cooling in an information handling system.
A further need has arisen for a system and method that detects one or more blank modules in an information handling system.
In accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure, a system and method are described which substantially eliminate or reduce disadvantages with previous systems and methods. The installation and detection of one or more blank modules in a modular chassis allows for the efficient and optimal cooling of one or more computing modules.
In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, an information handling system is provided. The information handling system includes at least one computing module. A modular chassis including one or more slots receives in each of the slots either the computing module or a blank module. The computing module interfaces with a management module where the management module is operable to detect the presence of one or more of the computing modules in one or more of the slots. One or more sensors associated with the slots detect if one or more of the blank modules are installed in one or more of the slots.
More specifically in one embodiment, the computing module comprises a modular server that includes a module housing and the blank module comprises only the module housing. The computing module transmits an electronic signal to the management module via a midplane so that the management module can detect the presence of one or more of the computing modules in one or more of the slots. The sensors are disposed on the midplane and detect when one or more of the blank modules are disposed in one or more of the slots. When a slot is empty and therefore contains neither a computing module nor a blank module, the sensor provides an indication to a user that the slot is empty.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, a method for detecting one or more blank modules in a modular system is disclosed. The method includes determining if one or more computing modules are installed in one or more slots of a modular chassis and if one or more blank modules are installed in one or more of the slots of the modular chassis. Based on the determination of the type of modules installed in the slots, the method identifies one or more of the slots that are empty and therefore contain neither a computing module or a blank module and provides an indication regarding the one nor more empty slots.
The present disclosure provides a number of important technical advantages. One important technical advantage is the efficient cooling of the system. Installing one or more blank modules in slots not containing a computing module in the modular chassis results in no empty slots and allows the system to behave as if each slot is occupied by a computing module. Because there are no empty slots, there is no path of least resistance for the cooling air flow to follow. Therefore, when the cooling fans draw in air to cool the computing modules, the cooling air passes evenly over all the computing modules sufficiently cooling the computing modules. Because each computing module receives adequate cooling, the system does not overheat and the cooling fans do not need to increase operational speeds in order to cool the system. Therefore, the system is more efficient and economical to operate because the cooling fans operate at an efficient operating speed and are not over-extended. Furthermore, the efficient cooling due to the presence of the blank modules prevents the system from overheating and shutting down on the user resulting in less system downtime and unexpected losses of data.
Another important technical advantage of the present disclosure is the ability to detect the presence of blank modules in the modular chassis. Being able to detect the absence of a blank module and therefore determine which slots are empty allows the user to take action before the system experiences a malfunction. For instance, if the system includes an empty slot, the majority of the cooling air flows through the empty slot instead of over the computing modules which may result in the system overheating and shutting down. But the sensors detect when a slot does not contain a blank module and provide an indication to the user that there is an empty slot which may cause a system malfunction. The ability to sense the presence of the blank modules and alert the user to any potential problems allows the user to proactively react to prevent system failures due to overheating. In addition, the inclusion of one or more of the blank modules allows for an EMI (electromagnetic interference) seal which prevents EMI which may occur if the slots of the modular chassis are not properly sealed with either a computing module or a blank module.